Chancellor Robert Berdahl met with more than 40 reporters
last week following a noisy and emotional demonstration on
Aug. 26 against a UC Berkeley sophomore who reportedly
walked away after his best friend attacked a child in a
Nevada casino last year. The friend later allegedly killed
the 7-year-old girl. Police say the Berkeley student kept
quiet about the crime when his friend confessed.

The chancellor extended sympathy to Yolanda Manuel, the
mother of the slain child, who joined the protesters. The
majority of the demonstrators were bused to the campus by
two Los Angeles radio talk-show hosts.

Berdahl also expressed outrage at the crime, but
explained that the university had a legal responsibility to
protect the due process rights of the Berkeley student, who
has not been charged with any crime.

Here is the statement Chancellor Berdahl gave at the
press conference. (A full transcript of the press conference
is also available here.)

I want to extend my heartfelt
sympathy to Ms. Yolanda Manuel and her family, who suffered
the tragic loss of their 7-year-old daughter. Sherrice
Iverson's death was a brutal and senseless act of violence
that our entire university community condemns in the
strongest possible terms.

The university has been asked to
expel a student who failed to report what he knew of the
crime. The public has been outraged not only by the crime
itself but by press reports of callous and reprehensible
statements attributed to the student. I had the same
reaction when I read those comments. However, as a public
institution the university has due process procedures it
must follow in cases of dismissal. This student has not been
charged with any violation of criminal law or the campus
student code that would provide a basis for any such review.
We cannot set aside due process based upon our outrage over
a particular instance.

The demonstration that was held
today on this campus is an appropriate means of launching a
discussion of the adequacy of existing legislation. We need
to build a safer society by ensuring that each of us takes
the safety and well-being of our fellow citizens as our own
personal responsibility. As a public university we strive to
educate students to assume that responsibility.